Romero knocks out Rockhold at UFC 221

Last night (Feb. 10), UFC 221 took place inside Perth Arena in Perth, Australia. In fact, Whittaker defeated Romero to win the middleweight title back in July of a year ago at UFC 213.

But Cuba's Romero was ineligible to claim the interim title when he missed the weight at Friday's weigh-ins. Rockhold appeared to have the upper hand when the fight-ending sequence occurred.

Originally UFC 221 was supposed to showcase a bout between Whittaker and Rockhold, however, "Bobby Knuckles" contracted a awful staph infection that left him in serious condition in the hospital. The new fight between Rockhold and Romero was supposed to be for the interim middleweight title.

Although he botched his weight cut, UFC President Dana White told ESPN that Romero will rematch Whittaker at a later date.

UFC 211 was rumored to be headlined by a Middleweight title unification bout between Undisputed Champion Georges St. Pierre and Interim Champion Robert Whittaker, health issues have rendered both of them unable to compete. Romero stepped in on a few weeks notice to replace Whittaker.

Romero was in frightening form before his loss to Whittaker, winning eight in a row, including knockouts over former champions Lyoto Machida and Chris Weidman. He scored points in the form of leg kicks and a steady jab, but he never completely settled into a rhythm. Romero, 40, followed with a standing-to-ground uppercut that snapped back his counterpart's head and forced referee Marc Goddard to act on his behalf. He lost his UFC title in a stunning upset to Michael Bisping in June 2016 via first-round knockout.

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